Clip nuts clip around a substrate such as a metal flange, and are designed to clip a nut with threads into place before installing a screw or other fastener through the threads. The clip portion of the clip nut is often made of spring steel, which is inherently flexible so that the clip may slide over an underlying substrate, and into a desired installed location. The flexibility of the spring steel can be problematic, however. For example, in prior art clip nuts, when installing a fastener (e.g., a threaded screw or bolt that goes through the threads of the nut) and simultaneously applying a downward force, portions of the clip nut may flex, and a misalignment can occur between the threads of the nut and the fastener that is being threaded into the nut. This misalignment can cause the fastener to bind, which can then cause a torque-sensitive tool to shut off before the fastener has been fully installed through the threads. Therefore, sometimes other types of fasteners (e.g., nut-plates) are preferentially used, which can lead to increased cost and/or weight.